The Sacred Oracle Monkey
by Jewelfirecraftd
Summary: School assignment to compose our own Greek myths! This was one of my friend's, and it's really good! (and really long) So if ya' got nothin' else to do and are okay with reading an over 3,000 word story, then why not take a look? (Rated T for weird ending)


**The Sacred Oracle Monkey**

By Sammy

The Muses sang about Alistaire and his quest for the Sacred Oracle Monkey.

Alistaire of Syracuse was the most handsome Greek hero that ever lived, and he lived up to his name with his strength and intelligence. However, he had never known who his parents were, for Alistaire's mother had hidden him away in the forest soon after birth. She feared that his father would imprison him like he had with her first nine children, so she gave birth to him in a dark cave, deep inside the forest, and put him in the hands of a kind mother bear. In the forest, Alistaire was raised by all of the animals. He grew to be stronger and wiser than anyone else who had ever lived, but all he wanted was to find his true parents. When he was grown, he left his woodland friends to set out in the world and to find his parents.

Athena, looking down from Olympus, spotted the fair Alistaire as he set out from the forest. She had taken a liking to him since she had first spotted him skipping from stone to stone as he caught fish with the bear. She promptly changed into a young deer and lured a lion across his path. Having grown up among the creatures of the wild, Alistaire felt pity for the deer. Lifting it upon his strong shoulders, he sprinted away at such a speed that the lion could no longer follow them. He kept going for two straight hours, and yet the rabbit would not hop down, but instead got heavier. Although he got scratched, bruised, and injured, he did not stop and bravely kept going. As the sun, Helios, reached the peak of his path through the sky, the goddess Athena revealed herself in her full glory.

"Young man," she spoke, "You have proved yourself to be the swiftest and the strongest of all men and have proven that you can show compassion for those in need of your skills. You have won my favor through this heroic deed, and I shall proudly help you regain your true parents." Now, Athena had a grudge against Alistaire's father for eating his own children. However, his mother was her own daughter, and Athena would gladly do anything for her kin.

Thanking Athena deeply, Alistaire kept going and was guided by the hand of the goddess. When he arrived at Syracuse, every woman who saw him offered him a place in her house and home, for all that saw him loved him. However, when the king saw him, he shrunk back in terror. An oracle had decreed that one of his sons would bring about his descent, and he would arrive as a stranger so handsome it would be a sin to turn him away. With the intent to poison him the next day, King Abaddon welcomed Alistaire into his impressively decorated castle. He cleansed, feasted, and pampered Alistaire while feigning great friendship. However, his mother immediately recognized him and sneaking into his room that night, proceeded to tell him about the evil doings of his true father. In a fury, Alistaire almost went and confronted his father but Athena whispered into his ear and suppressed his anger.

That night, Athena entered Alistaire's dreams. "You cannot defeat your father alone, for he is cunning and has his ways just as you do. You will need others' help. To do this, you must wait until after the feast tomorrow evening. Convince your mother to steal the key that he keeps in his left pocket. This is the key to the object that your siblings are imprisoned in. This object is located on a certain island in the Aegean Sea named Cogan. The prison is in the shape of an owl, and you will need to free your siblings there. With them, go and find whatever your father requests from you, for this will make the ten of you powerful beyond imaginable ways. Leave as soon as the midnight bell tolls, and I will guide you along your journey. Your journey will be hard and difficult, but this is the only way that you shall defeat your father. Now sleep, my dear Alistaire, for hard times await you in the days to come," she told him, and he fell into a deep sleep.

Alistaire awoke the next day and immediately went to his mother's quarters. However, the king had spies posted all over the palace, including the hallway outside the queen's bedroom, and they reported back to him. The king called Alistaire to his quarters, and commanded him to perform a heroic deed in exchange for a third of his kingdom. Although Alistaire was suspicious, he agreed and listened closely to what the king had to say.

"In the faraway city of Delphi, there is a sacred monkey statuette on the great temple of Delphi. You must retrieve it and bring it back to me," said King Abaddon, "Only then shall I grant you your greatest wish."

The Oracle Monkey was a sacrificed flying monkey that had been given the power of an oracle by the gods. The gods had sent it to save the first oracle, Anastasia, when she had been kidnapped by the cruel Ermolai for giving him a bad fortune. The monkey had carried her out across the wide ocean, and brought her back to her hometown of Delphi, where she once again returned as the renowned Oracle. Knowing that the gods had sent it, Anastasia sacrificed the monkey, after which the monkey became immortal and given the power of an oracle. When he was called to Olympus, the people of Delphi honored him as the savior of their very first oracle and made an altar in the temple of Delphi. To this day the Oracle Monkey still stands, watching over all oracles that exist today, and is the greatest treasure of the people of Delphi.

King Abaddon believed that Alistaire would never return, for although the people of Delphi were quite hospitable, they were quite fierce when protecting the Oracle Monkey. A hideous monster with eyes that could blind others and a number of poisoned claws was guarding it. Any stranger who merely got close to the relic would be swallowed immediately. But Abaddon did not know that Alistaire had Athena's help.

That night, Alistaire snuck out in the middle of the night with his father's key. Outside the door was a pair of winged sandals. He knew they were a present from Hermes, and as soon as he had put them on, the Hat of Invisibility appeared on his head and rendered him invisible. Alistaire flew off fearlessly, certain that Athena and the gods were on his side.

However, that was not completely true. Artemis was extremely jealous of him, for none of the woodland animals cherished her as they cherished him. Nor did she have his undefeated strength or woodland ways. Of course, he had never seen a glimpse of her, but she had seen him many a day, sprinting through the woods with the woodland animals. She longed to have his strength and gracefulness, and she vowed to make an end to him. Once he was gone, she would be respected again as the queen of the forest. On the other hand, Aphrodite had fallen in love with him. His perfect tangle of glistening golden hair, his deep, blue eyes, and his grace attracted her away from her injured, dirty husband, Hephaestus. She must have him as her husband, and she wouldn't stop until he was hers.

All the Olympians therefore watched as Alistaire flew to Cogan, eager to free his imprisoned siblings and to rise against his father. However, Artemis sent the Chimera to capture him. The Chimera, having an incredible sense of smell, immediately found Alistaire and began to hunt him. Aphrodite, knowing that her true love was in trouble, hid him in a cloud in an effort to hid him from the Chimera, covering him a stench so powerful that the Chimera whimpered away, his sense of smell destroyed forever.

Alistaire then continued on his way to Cogan. However, Aeolus was angry at Aphrodite for misusing his wind spirits to hide Alistaire, and sent his venti to hinder him from continuing his journey. The spirits circled him, creating a tornado in which he was whisked away. Luckily, he managed to untangle himself from the whirling storm of lightning and wind before they got too far. He then used his sword to separate them out, tossing them into each and every corner of the world, thus creating the North, South, East, and West winds, for which Aeolus was kept busy with and could no longer bother Alistaire.

As a result, Alistaire arrived at Cogan without any further disturbances. However, as he entered Cogan, the people greeted him without hospitality, for they were loyal subjects of King Abaddon and had been warned in advance. However, it so happened to be that the king of Cogan had fallen sick and came down with a raging fever that none of the physicians on the island could cure. Alistaire, on the other hand, knew many rare cures and remedies that he had learned from his childhood days in the forest. Therefore, he cured King Emerite easily.

As a result, the people of Cogan were in favor to him, and the king himself welcomed him into court to offer him a reward. However, he did not want to part with the owl, for it was considered sacred in the kingdom and was their greatest treasure. When Alistaire asked for the owl, as King Emerite knew he would, the king tried to tempt him with other royal treasures, but Alistaire insisted on the owl. King Emerite knew that it would break off all the ties that Cogan had with Syracuse. However, when Alistaire turned to the gods, King Emerite knew that he would be punished if he had done otherwise and reluctantly gave in. Alistaire immediately opened the box and out came his nine brothers and sisters, all of them just as strong and graceful as he was. However, Alistaire was most certainly the wisest, so they appointed him as their leader.

Although none of them knew it, their oldest brother, Jedrzej, who had led his siblings until then, was extremely unhappy with his brother. He felt as if Alistaire had stolen his respect and role in the family. He vowed to get revenge on Alistaire. He sulked off into the woods, but no one saw him go, for they were too busy marveling at the new freedom that they had.

Over the next few days, the ten of them built a massive ark, a ship so fine and luxurious that it outshone any other ark that had ever existed. With high hopes for the future, each of them sacrificed to each of the many gods and goddesses, making sure not to anger any of them. Most of the Olympians then came down to earth and gave each of them a gift. However, Artemis was nowhere to be found. The gifts of the gods compensated for her absence easily, though, for they presented them with the most splendid artifacts ever seen by mankind. For instance, Athena presented them with a beautiful compass that would point towards the owner's destination. Then, each of them swore by all the gods of Olympus to stand by Alistaire no matter what challenges they faced. Naming themselves the Syranauts, they packed their belongings and bade goodbye to King Emerite and his court.

Manning one large oar each, the ten siblings set out to retrieve what their father had demanded of them, which lay to the west. While the siblings chatted with their newfound brother gaily, Jedrzej sat, immersed in his own thoughts. He couldn't figure out whether he should be grateful, sad, or angry. After all, Alistaire was his brother. Artemis had known this would happen, for she had looked for anyone that could help her defeat Alistaire. She decided to turn Jedrzej around so that he would fight with her. She whispered in his ear that

The young and valiant heroes set off at a brisk pace, the gentle West Wind at their backs. However, they were soon to face their first challenge. As they had slept during their first night, a storm blew through the area. It had damaged their mast and as a result, they had had to stop on the nearest island they could find. Unfortunately, it was also where the Hydra, one of the dreadful offspring of Typhon, wrecked havoc among the people there. The people of the kingdom were scared and starving, and yet the Hydra kept on slaughtering them. The grandchildren of Athena felt sorry for them, and they decided to help them. They devised a foolproof plan and called for a mighty shield. The people, willing to help no matter what, worked as hard as they could and produced a mighty shield for their saviors. Holding the shield in front of the Hydra, the young heroes blinded the monstrous beast with its own venomous breath. The Hydra stumbled off to hide in its lair, never to be seen again.

As a symbol of gratitude, the people of the island fixed the boat up until it was as good as new, and the king of the island told them of the next challenge they would have to face on their journey. "If you keep going towards the west, you will face the cetea of the sea. Unless you can find the centaurs' half brothers, the Ichthyocentaurs, who live towards the east, you will find yourselves in grave danger. They are the only ones who can help you then."

With their new ship, Alistaire and his siblings set off for the Ichthyocentaurs' caves. Poseidon saw them coming from Mount Olympus and commanded the Nereids to guide them towards the caves. The playful Nereids guided them along, jumping in and out of the waters gaily. The Syranauts arrived at the Ichthyocentaurs' caves after a full day of traveling. However, they were nowhere to be found, for Artemis had chased them off with sharks long before the Syranauts had arrived in an attempt to prevent Alistaire from continuing. As the Ichthyocentaurs heard that the Nereids were back, however, they knew that it was safe to come back. Hearing what the Syranauts had come for, most of the creatures cowered and refused to go with them. However, two courageous Ichthyocentaurs named Bythos and Aphros offered to save them from the ceetea.

Thanking them gratefully, the Syranauts set off to the east, knowing that facing the monsters was inevitable. While they were still at sea, the heroes knew that they would be overpowered, so they hatched a plan to defeat the monsters.

The Cetea were sea dragons, however, when they approached the sea dragons, they rose up into the air so monstrously that even the bravest of the Syranauts cowered in their seats. Only Alistaire was the one who dared to face them. He flew an eagle between the two monsters. The two of them then proceeded to recite a riddle. "Give me food, and I shall live. Give me water, and I shall die. What am I?" The Syranauts then knew why the Ichthyocentaurs were required. They were the only ones who had figured out the answer to the riddle. All the others had perished trying.

"It is fire," answered Alistaire boldly. Having lost their powers, for a mere mortal had answered their riddle, the two cetea ate each other up, never to be seen again. From then on, all ships could safely sail in and out of the Mediterranean Sea.

The Mediterranean Sea was still a dangerous place to sail in, though, and the Olympians were busy guiding the Syranauts through dangers. As a result, Alistaire easily led his siblings through sea monsters, whirlpools, and massive storms. They finally arrived in Delphi, weary but unharmed.

Word had traveled faster than the young heroes, and the citizens of Delphi turned down any request for shelter and food from the Syranauts. King Estaban, the king of Delphi, had known that someone would come for the oracle monkey someday, but knew that his people would not let him give it up without an attempt to fight. He was a cruel king towards any stranger who even merely threatened his kingdom, and so he was determined to rid his kingdom of these strangers. Meanwhile, Jedrzej had fallen in love with the king's daughter, Dorinda. Princess Dorinda, on her part, had fallen for Alistaire and was willing to save him from her father's plans no matter what. Alistaire had also fallen in love with the princess, even though her father was quite cruel.

Athena was very pleased. Dorinda was the only one who could save Alistaire from the hands of King Estaban. As the midnight bell tolled, Dorinda came to Alistaire's room and confessed her everlasting love for him. Alistaire then held her in his arms and swore, that on the River Styx, that he would love her as long as he was alive.

The next morning, King Estaban commanded Alistaire to go and capture Pegasus in exchange for the oracle monkey. Pegasus had only been mastered once, and it had never been done with someone's bare hands. Dorinda, thinking ahead, gave him a magical bridle that she had inherited from her mother. It had the power to tame any animal. With that, Alistaire merely threw it over Pegasus' back and Pegasus was his. As Alistaire entered the throne room on Pegasus' back, King Estaban was shocked. He would, of course, not follow up on his part of the deal. He decided to poison the foreigners in the evening.

Dorinda had spied on her father while he was poisoning their glasses. She sneaked off to Alistaire's room once again and told him of her father's evil doings. She told him not to drink from the wine glasses and only from the water.

Shocked, Alistaire told the rest of his siblings. All of them believed him except Jedrzej. He thought that Alistaire was trying to prevent them from having fun once again and wanted to prove that he was lying. As they entered the dining hall, Jedrzej immediately drank from the wine glass. His beloved siblings gasped in horror as his eyes glazed over and he dropped to the floor. They all mourned over the loss of their dear brother, but knew they would have to get out soon enough. Dorinda came by all their rooms that night and led them through a tunnel underneath the castle. They grabbed the oracle monkey, for the castle passageways led there too, then left for Syracuse with Dorinda in the dark of the night,

Meanwhile, the king had not realized it, but his daughter had poisoned him by switching Alistaire's wine glass with his. He went through the same agony as Jedrzej and died, his face twisted forever in pain.

The people of Delphi then decided to take revenge on Alistaire and his siblings. They raced after them with their fastest warships, Dorinda's brother at the bow of the fastest one. Soon, they overtook the Syranauts, but Alistaire knew just what to do. He stopped the boat, let the others overtake them, and went the other way. The other ships then had to turn around and had to chased after the Syranauts the other way. However, by that time, Alistaire and his bride were gone.

Dorinda, though, had committed a terrible sin. She had murdered her own kin, and this was the worst crime that one could commit, especially if they were her parents. Therefore, the gods were no longer for them. The Syranauts immediately overthrew their father as soon as they got back with the help of the oracle monkey, but the gods threw the apple of misfortune between them. They began arguing about who was their heir and it grew into a violent clash. Soon, though, all of them had died, killed by their own siblings. Not as heroes, but as punished ones condemned to punishment in Tartarus by the gods. Athena felt pity for them, however, so she hung Alistaire and Dorinda in the sky as constellations to glitter in the night forever.


End file.
